Bombers strike after questioning by Nigerian locals

Suspected suicide bombers detonate devices in Maiduguri after being challenged by civilians, killing at least five.

13 Oct 2015 22:18 GMT

The September 20 attack in Maiduguri targeted a mosque and killed football fans watching a televised match [AP]

Three blasts in the northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri have killed at least five civilians and three suspected suicide bombers, sources told Al Jazeera.

The explosions took place in the Ajilari Cross area of the city at about 8pm local time (19:00 GMT) on Tuesday night.

Along with those killed, at least six others were injured in the attack in an area which has been attacked twice over the past month.

On Location: Fighting Boko Haram in Nigeria's Borno State

Sources said the three suspected suicide bombers, two men and a woman, raised suspicions before the blasts when they went to the Ajilari Cross area and started asking for directions.

When they were challenged by locals, they set off their explosives, the sources said.

Al Jazeera's Ahmed Idris, reporting from Maiduguri, said it may not be possible to get a final casualty toll until the morning, as a curfew is currently in place in the city, which has been hit by the Boko Haram armed group regularly over the past few months.

Military, police and emergency service workers were continuing to comb the scene for evidence late on Tuesday night.

The Ajilari Cross area has been targeted by similar attacks twice in the last month, including on September 20 when at least 117 were killed.

On October 1, at least 10 people were killed and 39 injured when four suicide bombers blew themselves up in a wave of attacks in Ajilari Cross, which is near Maiduguri airport and a military base.

At least two bombs were strapped to teenage girls, witnesses and the police said at the time.

The September 20 attack hit a mosque and killed football fans watching a televised match as well as bystanders.

The previous attacks were blamed on the Boko Haram, which has increasingly hit "soft" civilian targets in recent months using suicide bombers and improvised explosive devices.